Yes, I've also heard they were a good place to work, Chuck. I've covered NI off and on over the last decade and a half. I've always been surprised at how advanced they've been in a wide range of technology. The company name suggests just hardware and components -- far from it.

@Rob I second your assertion of "good choice"... I'll even elevate it to "great choice". My association with NI started back in grad school when I needed to integrate test and measurement devices via GPIB and the NI GPIB boards and drivers were tops. Coupled with the libraries and drivers for the ASYST dialect of FORTH, NI led the way in how to do "plug & play" and saved it from the pitfalls of "plug & pray". Moving from FORTH into C, I was able to use NI's LabWindows/CVI through the 1990's to create all sorts of custom and commercial diagnostics systems. I switched over to LabVIEW when I joined academia so that I could teach future non-programming technical managers how to prototype all manner of systems by describing the system visually. I'm not sure how our undergraduate major would cover the required subject matter if we needed to take time out to master text-based programming. Kudos to Jim Truchard and Jeff Kodosky -- most deserving of a Lifetime Achievement Award...

Jim Truchard and Jeff Kodosky are a good choice for the ACE Award. The LabVIEW technology has been important in the electronics and automation world. National Instruments. has produced a wide range of technology.

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